The Hopkinsville fire-fighter accused of assaulting a Clarksville Police officer with his car last year was found not guilty in Montgomery County court Wednesday.

The Leaf-Chronicle reports 44-year old Michael Ray Morris was acquitted by a jury that only deliberated for about 15 minutes before coming back with their verdict of not guilty.

Morris had been accused of hitting Officer Robert Durham with his vehicle March 19^th of last year in the parking lot of the Great Escape Movie Theater. As previously reported, Officer Durham said he saw Morris unclothed in the back of a vehicle with his girlfriend and told him to stop.

Morris said he was only changing shirts and that he didn’t know the off-duty Durham was a police officer and drove away. The assault charge came when Durham said he was struck by the vehicle in the process.

Defense attorney Carrie Gasaway told the paper that Morris is grateful to the jury for taking their job seriously and clearing his name of any wrong-doing.

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05/18/2012/am

Hopkinsville Police have arrested the man they say is responsible for the recent major thefts at Wal-Mart.

The arrest card for 27-year old Donald Edwin Ash of Clarksville says he was interviewed yesterday and admitted to being the person who removed 33 pieces of jewelry from an unlocked display case Wednesday morning and being the person who put two laptop computers under his coat and walked out of the store.

The two burglaries included merchandise with a combined value of 75-hundred dollars. The suspect’s girlfriend, 35-year old Leanna Faulkner of Oak Grove, was cited into court later in the day on theft charges after police executed a search warrant on her residence and found some of the stolen items and found evidence that led them to believe Ash was staying with her and that she had knowledge of the incidents.

Ash was arrested and charged with three counts of felony theft.

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05/18/2012/am

Little River Days is underway in downtown Hopkinsville and officials hope the great weather will spell one of the biggest events ever.

As previously reported, there is live entertainment for lunch and during the evening again this year and City Parks and Recreation Director Gary McIntyre says that’s just a small part of this year’s festival.

Bethel Street is closed for the festival, as is West 7^th Street from the Little River bridge to the South Main Street intersection. Little River Days runs through Sunday.

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05/17/2012/am

Hopkinsville Police held its monthly crime report meeting Thursday afternoon at the Lackey Municipal building, where officers updated the public about criminal activities happening in various neighborhoods.

Captain Michael Seis informed Police Chief Guy Howie that he believed an arrest will likely be made in the coming days concerning a recent shooting.

The crime report meetings are open to the public and are held each third Thursday of the month at the Lackey Municipal Building at 4:30 p.m.
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The weather has been fantastic the last few days for a picnic, graduations and yes—even bridge building.

That has allowed workers with Hall Contracting to make up any lost ground while working around the clock to repair the Eggner’s Ferry Bridge as quickly as possible.

Kentucky Highway Department spokesman Keith Todd says no time is being wasted.

Todd says officials with Hall Contracting have said they will finish the bridge by May 27^th and the state has no reason at this point to believe they won’t.

Once the 322-foot span is secured and the bridge is finished, Todd says large inspection crew will arrive to go over the structure in detail to be sure it’s safe before any traffic is allowed to cross. The only thing that could slow the crew down at this point is rain.

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05/17/2012/am